Cotton fabrics were treated with Biopag, which does not have any functional groups that are reactive toward cellulose, using crosslinking agents or a binder, for the purpose of imparting a durable antimicrobial finish. In this respect, it was found that the crosslinking agents were more effective than the binder. It was confirmed by FT-IR that the characteristic split peaks of Biopag were still seen even after repeated launderings. The crosslinking agents deteriorated the whiteness and tensile strength of the Biopag-treated cotton fabrics, while the wrinkle recovery angles (WRAs) were significantly improved. The one-step padding of Biopag and the crosslinking agent was found to be superior to the two-step padding method in which Biopag padding was followed by padding of crosslinking agent in respect of WRA, whereas the whiteness and tensile strength were vice versa. (C) 2007 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.